What prevents Ninh Binh Club from returning to V-League despite having the upper hand?

Ninh Binh Club NEEDS TO ACT NOW

The 2024 - 2025 season has not ended yet, but Ninh Binh Club has won 42 points after 14 matches (absolutely winning, only conceding 1 goal), sitting comfortably at the top of the table, 12 points ahead of the second-place team. Hoang Duc and his teammates have also convincingly defeated 2 championship competitors, Binh Phuoc Club and PVF-CAND. It can be said that it is only a matter of time before Coach Viet Thang and his team touch the first-class championship title. However, even if they win the first-class championship with a perfect record of 20 wins, Ninh Binh Club still may not return to the V-League. Why?

Hoang Duc and his teammates are at risk of staying in the first division if Ninh Binh Club does not improve its facilities.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

From the 2025-2026 season, the first division championship is no longer a default passport to the V-League, but this is only a necessary condition. The sufficient condition is that the club must meet a series of strict criteria, including requirements on the quality of facilities (stadium, training ground, function rooms, etc.), youth training system, financial transparency and organization. All of these requirements are based on regulations issued by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Before each season, the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) will conduct inspections and assessments. If the clubs do not meet the requirements and are not licensed by the VFF, they will not be able to be promoted no matter how impressive their achievements on the field are.

At this time, Ninh Binh Club still cannot ensure quality in many categories. Ninh Binh Stadium has been renovated, but still cannot meet the requirements of Vietnam Professional Football Joint Stock Company (VPF) - the unit that organizes professional football tournaments in Vietnam. Specifically, the lighting system is not up to standard, and facilities to serve the audience such as toilets, seats, etc. are also lacking. Therefore, the ancient capital team needs to quickly overcome and improve so that Hoang Duc, Van Lam, etc. can return to the most prestigious playground in Vietnam next season.

CURRENT SITUATION IN EASTERN COUNTRY

Sharing on the program Golden Hour Sports of Vietnam Television (VTV), some clubs expressed their concerns. The strict regulations set by the AFC have not only caused difficulties for first-class teams like Ninh Binh Club, but also for teams in the V-League. Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh and Binh Dinh Clubs are all looking for quality training grounds for their first teams, not to mention the youth teams. Obviously, underdeveloped facilities are a common problem in Vietnamese football. One of the main reasons for this situation is the issue of ownership and management of stadiums. Most stadiums are public property, under the management of local authorities. Clubs that want to invest in upgrading must also ask for permission and face many cumbersome administrative procedures. The lack of close coordination between clubs and local authorities makes improving facilities difficult.

Poor infrastructure directly affects the quality of football. Players do not have the best training conditions, leading to their physical strength and technique not being fully developed. The lack of facilities in the field also reduces the appeal of matches, causing spectators to turn away. In addition, poor quality grass not only reduces professionalism but also endangers players. Recently, when playing on the rough grass of My Dinh Stadium, two young players were injured: Pham Ly Duc (HAGL) and Vu Tien Long (Quang Nam Club). Even more sadly, young Vietnamese players who are used to training on bad fields are bewildered when playing on beautiful fields at international tournaments. Coach Cristiano Roland of the Vietnam U.17 team once bitterly commented about his students: "We are used to practicing on bad fields, now we don't know how to avoid slipping on beautiful fields" (!).

To solve this problem, there needs to be a drastic change in thinking and action. Clubs need to be more proactive in investing in facilities, perhaps by renting land to build their own training grounds or cooperating with businesses. Local authorities need to create favorable conditions for clubs to upgrade stadiums. VFF and VPF need to monitor more closely and stop granting exceptions to clubs that do not meet standards.

Vietnamese football has reached impressive milestones such as runner-up of the 2018 AFC U23 Championship, quarter-final of the 2019 Asian Cup, champion of the 2018 AFF Cup, 2024... However, to realize the World Cup dream, we must build a solid foundation for football. These are quality football fields, modern youth training academies...

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dieu-gi-ngan-club-ninh-binh-tro-lai-v-league-du-dang-chiem-the-thuong-phong-185250421195741879.htm